Last weekend, a frightening incident occurred in Shizuoka Prefecture where 7 people including two children were seriously injured after coming into contact with an electric fence meant to keep animals out of a field of crops. According to locals, the two families had come to play in a nearby stream and when one of the men was shocked by the fence the others went to help and were also injured.

Two of the injured people later died.

Some netizens on 2ch were initially critical of the victims and cracked jokes, but once pictures of a harmless-looking fence emerged others were more sympathetic and expressed disbelief that such a tiny fence would be wired to produce such high voltage.

“2 Critically Injured By Electric Shock From Animal Proof Fence

On the evening of the 19th, 7 people including adults and children were shocked by an electric fence installed around a field in Izu-machi, Shizuoka Prefecture. Among the victims, two men in their 40’s suffered serious injuries and became unconscious.

At 4:40 on the 19th, 7 people including 5 adults and 2 children were shocked by an electric fence installed around a field in Ishiki in Izu-machi, Shizuoka Prefecture. According to police, two men ages 42 and 47 were transported to the hospital where they received treatment, but were unconscious with serious injuries.

In addition three people–two 8-year old children, a woman in her forties and a woman in her seventies—are conscious and receiving medical treatment.

According to police, 6 of the seven people are from two families, and came to have fun at a nearby relative’s house, while the remaining person is a 70-year-old woman who lives in the area.

According to a man who lives close to the scene, the two families were playing in an area where the river flows in front of a farm field. One of the men was shocked by the electric fence and the others were injured when they attempted to help him.

A 52-year-old who lives in the neighborhood also spoke. “Deer and wild boars show up in these parts, so many people installed electric fences along the river. But we rarely ever get people who come to play in the water in this area.”

Police are investigate further into the situation at the time of the incident.

An Investigation Into the Installation of the Fence

Miyawaki Yutaka, chief member of the Japan Electric Fence Council, remarked, “Anybody can install an electric fence, but electrifying a fence that produces a direct shock from a 100 volt household power source is forbidden, and safety precautions are taken in the installation to ensure that even if a person comes into contact with the fence, it doesn’t conduct a large amount of electricity. In this instance, it appears a large current was conducted when touched by several people, so we need to thoroughly investigate the installation process.”